1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to browsers. More specifically, the present invention relates to associating unique identifiers with browsers.
2. Description of the Related Art
The use of Internet and web resources is nearly ubiquitous throughout the industrialized world. Users generally access the Internet using any of a number of computing devices capable of communicating over a communication network, whether wirelessly or through wired connections. More specifically, the user may use a browser application on a computing device to access content on any of a number of webpages and websites hosted by one or more web servers.
Upon request, such a browser may download content related to a designated webpage, as well as render the webpage to be displayed. Such downloaded content may include a variety of different types of files, including documents, graphics, audio and video, etc., as well as related data (e.g., metadata, stylesheets including cascading stylesheets). The downloaded content may be stored in a browser cache in local memory of the computing device. Various elements and components of a particular webpage or website may change over time (e.g., as a publisher publishes new or updated content). Some components or elements, however, remain static and unchanged. When the user leaves the webpage and later wishes to return, the browser cache allows the computing device to retrieve static, unchanged files related to the associated webpage from local memory, rather than re-downloading the same web objects when a user wishes to revisit the webpage.
Currently, browsers do not contain or expose any unique identifiers that can be accessed and used by websites. Present websites and webpages may track and share data regarding the activity (e.g., repeat visits) of the user in relation to a particular webpage. Such data may include state information (e.g., preferences, shopping cart items), provide registration or authentication information (e.g., user names, passwords, addresses/locations), or otherwise track browsing history (e.g., which webpages were visited, a number of visits, when the visits occurred). Because nearly all aspects of modern life may be reflected in or otherwise involve Internet activity, however, some of the tracked data may be personally identifiable of a particular individual. Tracking mechanisms that encompass such personally identifiable data may therefore risk exposure of personal, confidential, and/or otherwise sensitive user information. In the interests of protecting user privacy, some jurisdictions may even have statutes or regulations restricting the type of data that may be tracked.
Meanwhile, various publishers, service providers, and related entities may be interested in obtaining statistical data regarding the user traffic that visits a given webpage or website. Although a web server may be able to identify a number of download requests for a particular webpage, such requests may be made by the same user (or the same small set of users). Such a metric may therefore fail to present an accurate picture of the traffic or user activity involving the webpage, while using more the particularized data discussed above may risk exposure of information that is personally identifiable of a specific user.
There is, therefore, a need in the art for improved systems and methods for associating unique identifiers with browsers independent of any particular website.